Shatter the Box

What a great day it has been today! After taking a small hiatus from the blogging world to thoroughly enjoy my new baby boy... I was inspired today to share with you a small excerpt from our MOPS this morning.  

A friend of mine shared with us today about the incredible things God is doing in her life and how He is using her family in incredible ways for His glory.  She shared with us how we often put an invisible box around God and keep things need and tidy in our relationship with Him.  Yes, God is good, yes, He loves us, yes, He takes care of us... and we completely miss out on how INCREDIBLE He truly is.  We forget about how huge and awesome He is.  How He is able to do more than we can possibly imagine.  That He is still performing miracles - even healing the blind and sick - all around the world.  

We need to SHATTER THAT BOX!

Are you limiting God in your life? Do you really believe that He is all powerful? 

Do you live like He is all powerful? Do you believe in faith that He can actually 

do what you are praying for? 

Do you risk everything that you have and step out in faith every single day? 

I know this is something that I need to work on.  

I would like to share part of her notes:

"The issue comes down to how much of ourselves we invest in Jesus.  

Have we held some back for ourselves - just in case He's not as real, 

as powerful, as active as we thought? Just in case He doesn't come through? 

Just in case He can't be taken at His word? 

Or have we banked everything we have and everything we are on the 

reality that Jesus Christ is Lord of all the earth?"

God is who He says He is.  

He is unchanging, worthy of our trust in Him, and ALL POWERFUL!

Trust in these things and don't let your fear or doubt hold you back! 

God has called us to so much more.    

much love,

bc

Child-like Faith

I think one reason God gives the world children is because they teach us so much about being a Christ follower. Not a week goes by that Madi doesn't teach me something about loving my Savior. One thing that has been on my heart lately is trust.

Our family has been experiencing some times of financial difficulty lately (which I am sure a lot of you can relate to) and my faith is being put to the test. It is extremely hard for me to trust unwaveringly in God to provide. I feel like I have to do something to help Him along or just at least have some control over the situation. However, looking at the life of my precious little girl, I understand a little more about what God means when He talks about having child-like faith.

As parents we expect complete obedience from our children. Yes, they often mess up and it takes time for them to understand what that means, but we discipline and correct when necessary. We don't expect them to worry about food and clothing, they don't worry about where they will live, children never ask if they have enough money to pay for our bills, and so on. Just like our children, God promises to provide for our every need. He expects our complete dependance on Him. We aren't to worry about feeding our family, about paying our bills, about clothing, shelter, or even transportation. God promises that when we seek Him above all else, He will be faithful to provide for our needs.

This is so difficult for us! Well, at least for me. I often talk about how I wish I could go back to the days where my only worry was which toy I was going to play with or what outfit I would wear. And then I catch myself and realize, that is EXACTLY how I should be right now. I should not be worrying about ANYTHING. When I worry, I am saying to God that HE is not big enough to take care of my problems. How preposterous is that? The God of the Universe who created all things can't handle my burdens? Especially when they are so small compared to what other people in this world are facing.

As a mom, it drives me crazy when I have to tell Madi to obey over and over and over again. I want to tell her one time and then that be the end of it (such a nice dream isn't it?). Sometimes I wonder why God doesn't just "spank my butt" as Madi puts it. He tells me to trust Him over and over again, and I fight and struggle against Him trying to get my own way.

What I love about the Lord is that He cares so deeply for each one of us. There is no problem too small for Him to handle. And just because there are 7 billion people on the planet doesn't mean that He doesn't have time to take care of each and every one of us. And when I become discouraged and feel hopeless and uncertain, I look to my precious child. How carefree and happy she is. How completely and utterly trusting she is. How she doesn't worry about what's happening in the future but lives completely, knowing that everything in her world is just as it should be. Just like what God wants for us.

much love,
bc